Oliver Nolan
Staff Writer
Even in the wake of a 100 band, city spanning musical show-case, it’s hard to argue with a free gig. On this chilly Friday evening, as part of the 5th Not Saying Boo!, also taking place across the river in the Twisted Pepper, the Bernard Shaw plays host to Trinity’s own Tandem Felix. They support Hard Working Class Heroes Spies, currently shaking off the ‘buzz’ of their biggest indoor gig yet in the Button factory the previous night, and perhaps at least one hangover, courtesy of complimentary Bulmers.
‘It’s good to see Spies, I don’t think I’ve seen them for…about a week now’, comments Felix singer David Tapley. Their five-song set tonight is a confident one, as you would expect from a band who played Trinity Ball a few months back, and reached the finals of this year’s Pick for the Picnic contest. They dedicate California (Year One) to Spies guitarist Conor Cusack, as well as, more broadly, ‘the ladies’. Last week, when they performed in The Workman’s Club, they suffered from a muddled sound-mix, yet there are no such issues here. The dreamy Canyons is, as always, a highlight. The hushed intro to (deep breath) And we could just hold each other in fear of the lord is spoiled slightly by the music audible from the smoking area, but thankfully the band go on to drown out that racket with aplomb, bringing their short set to a triumphant close.
This is, it transpires, Spies’ second gig of the day. Their first, singer Michael Broderick tells the crowd, took place in the smoking area of DIT Aungier St, ‘playing to a few guys, their backs to us. Smoking’. The quintet are visibly more comfortable in the more familiar, and indeed warmer surroundings of the Bernard Shaw. By now, a sizeable crowd has gathered, and at 9pm they take the stage, opening with a new song. There’s not quite enough room for all of them onstage, and bassist Andrew McGuirk spends much of the gig perched on a step leading to the back room. The untitled track possesses a mid-paced rhythm, and a steady bassline that doesn’t sound unlike like The Horror’s recent output. Notably, drummer Jeffrey Courtney Flynn is sporting a striking blue cap, which prompts a few jovial heckles. Besides the headgear, Barricade gets the biggest response, and they follow up with its b-side, Weaker Body. Fill The Silence, the one song from the Liars Call Me King EP performed, rounds off the set. By the time it reaches its towering climax, the drummer is, tellingly, hatless.
A strong showing from two of Dublin’s best new bands.
Tandem Felix played:
Yoghurt
Drag
California (Year One)
Canyons
And We Could Just hold each other in Fear of the Lord.
Spies played:
Untitled New Song
Emily
Ghosts
Barricade
Weaker Body
Into the Woods
Fill The Silence.
